Weatherization and Energy Efficiency Improvement for Existing Homes : An Engineering Approach

Providing a proven set of energy efficiency measures and opportunities for saving energy and reducing operating costs for existing homes, this volume presents general tools and procedures for performing home weatherization such as insulation improvements as well as methods to reduce air leakage. The author describes several techniques and technologies that can reduce energy use or operating costs, including methods to retrofit existing homes to be net-zero energy buildings. Each chapter contains simplified calculation methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of various efficiency measures. The final chapter offers a series of case studies including examples of weatherized homes.

Moncef Krarti is theProfessor and Coordinator for the Building Systems Program in the Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering Department at the University of Colorado. He has vast experience in designing, testing, and assessing innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies applied to buildings. He has directed several projects in designing energy efficient buildings including innovative mechanical and electrical energy systems. Prof. Krarti has published over 250 technical journals and handbook chapters in various fields related to energy efficiency and energy management of the built environment. Moreover, he has published several books on building energy efficient systems. He taught courses related to building electrical systems for over 20 years in the US and abroad.

He is currently the director of an industrial university collaborative research center on building energy smart technologies. As part of his activities as a professor at the University of Colorado, he has been managing the research activities of an energy management center at the University of Colorado with an emphasis of testing and evaluating the performance of mechanical and electrical systems for residential and commercial buildings. He has also helped the development of similar energy efficiency centers in other countries including Brazil, Mexico, and Tunisia. Dr. Krarti has an extensive experience in promoting building energy efficiency technologies and policies overseas, including the development of building energy codes and energy efficiency training programs in several countries, including Tunisia, Sri Lanka, Egypt and collaborative research with over ten countries in Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America.